First localg.a.p. Livestock Training In Africa

27 March 2013

The very first localg.a.p. livestock training session in Africa was conducted in early February
2013 at the offices of the Consumer Goods Council (CGCSA) in Johannesburg, South Africa. Part of a
2-day training session, it was attended by quality assurance managers, technologists and buyers of
several major retailers in South Africa that included Cambridge Food, Fruit & Veg City, Makro
SA, Massfresh, Massmart/Walmart, Pick ‘n Pay, Shoprite/Checkers, Spar National Fresh Marketing and
The Fruitspot.

The training was conducted by SA Livestock GAP, a GLOBALG.A.P. Associate Member and the company
responsible for implementing and coordinating the localg.a.p. program for livestock in South
Africa. There is an agreement in place between SA Livestock GAP and GLOBALG.A.P. to implement this
program locally. Participants learned about the requirements of the localg.a.p. standard for
livestock as discussed and agreed by sector-specific representatives of each retailer. A lot of
focus was placed on local regulatory and legal requirements that would also be covered as part of
this standard. SA Livestock GAP trainers also explained the steps producers need to follow in order
to apply and register as well as localg.a.p. assessment and approval procedures.

SA Livestock GAP announced that they would establish and coordinate a National Technical Working
Group specifically for livestock related matters. This would provide a valuable opportunity to
explore the issues that would be problematic as part of the standard implementation as well as to
streamline the standard and systems to be specific for the South African market. The National
Technical Working Group would consist of representatives from different backgrounds, such as
retailers, producer organizations, consultants, certification bodies, Farm Assurers, etc.

All major retailers in South Africa have agreed to adopt the localg.a.p. program for Fruit and
Vegetables and Livestock (covering all sub-scopes applicable to South Africa). The process has been
coordinated by a joint effort of the Food Safety Initiative (FSI) and GLOBALG.A.P. The role of FSI
is to provide impartial and objective scientific information on all food safety, nutrition and
related regulatory matters associated with the food chain to the South African food industry, other
stakeholders and the public at large, in order to ensure safe and nutritious food.